


Always Come By

by Annide



Series: 911 Weeks [5]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: 911week2020, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:41:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24831784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annide/pseuds/Annide
Summary: Bobby's afternoon alone is cut short when a sad Buck shows up at his doorstep.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley & Bobby Nash
Series: 911 Weeks [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1808203
Comments: 10
Kudos: 106
Collections: 9-1-1 Tales





	Always Come By

**Author's Note:**

> Written for 911week Day 5: "It's okay, you can cry" + comfort

Bobby was enjoying some quiet time alone at the house. May and Harry were at Michael’s, and Athena was working. It was nice to have the house all to himself for once. He liked the silence and the lack of obligation to interact with others. He could simply sit there, read a book or watch some TV, without any distractions. Until there was a knock on the door that is. He put his book down and walked over to answer, wondering who it could possibly be. He hadn’t been expecting anyone and the others would’ve let themselves in. He opened the door to find Buck standing on the other side, playing with his hands nervously. He lifted his head up and talked before Bobby had time to say anything.

“You always say that if I ever need anything, I can just come by the house, do you mean that?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t. Come on in.” Bobby moved out of his way and Buck walked in. “What do you need?”

“Nothing, I... uh... I just don’t want to be alone right now.”

He made his way down the stairs into the dining room. He seemed somewhat down and Bobby wondered what could’ve caused him to not only feel that way but also come all the way here to see him. He remembered what it was like to live on his own, in that small apartment, with no one to talk to. It was what he’d wanted at the time, but he realised that he could’ve used having people around more back then. Buck used to live with roommates. He spent three days, and nights, a week at the firehouse with the whole crew. He was bound to feel lonely every once in a while at his place with no one else there.

“So you need company. That’s good. We can sit outside.” Bobby led the way and they each took place in one of the chairs on the patio. “Did something happen?”

“No.” Buck was back to staring at his hands. He sat on the edge of the chair, bent forward so his arms could rest on his knees. He sighed and turned his head to look at Bobby. “Do you ever feel kinda sad, but you can’t really explain why?”

“Of course, I do. I think everyone feels that way sometimes.”

“What do you do when you feel like that?”

“I try to just ride it out, push through it. I find distractions, I spend time with people I care about. But sometimes, it’s good to let yourself feel those things. You taught me that.”

“I did?”

“You and Hen. Remember, when you found me passed out drunk in my apartment? Said I could ask for help?”

“Who knew I was that smart?” Buck joked. They both laughed.

They sat in silence. Bobby didn’t know what more to add. Buck seemed to be thinking about it all. It made Bobby happy to have him here, to know that he trusted him enough to come to him and talk about how he was feeling. A lot of people before had made comments about their relationship, how he acted like a father toward Buck. He was always quick to say he wasn’t his father, but maybe he was the next best thing. Buck leaned on him, relied on him, let him teach him all sorts of things, important life things like cooking. Bobby didn’t know much about Buck’s parents, he hadn’t even known about Maddie until she showed up, but he was happy to fill in for them. If Buck needed a father figure, he could be it.

He loved him like a son after all. It had taken him a while to admit it, he used to feel guilty about it because he lost his son. But no one could ever replace his own kids. No matter how much he cared for Buck, May and Harry, it wouldn’t change anything about the love he had for Brook and Robert Jr. Sometimes he wanted to ask Buck about his parents though. He was curious why he never heard about them, why they never once came to visit. Bobby was at the hospital practically every day after Buck got stuck under the fire truck, he saw a lot of Maddie, but couldn’t remember them saying anything about their parents. He never asked, however, he assumed Buck would share the story when he’d be ready.

There was a nice breeze outside. It felt nice and comfortable out here. Bobby always enjoyed spending time on the patio, sitting and talking. He turned to see that Buck had relaxed and was now leaning back in his chair, his head laid back as he stared up at the sky. Bobby looked at him long enough to notice tears quietly falling down his cheek. He stood and walked over to him. He leaned down and wrapped him into a hug.

“It’s okay, you can cry.”

It was clear Buck had been trying to hold back his tears, doing his best not to show too much of his emotions. He immediately broke down when he felt himself accepted, crying harder as he put his own arms around Bobby.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologise. It’s okay to feel sad, Buck.”

“But I don’t even know why I’m crying.”

Buck buried his face in Bobby’s shirt, which was quickly getting wet. He could feel him shaking from sobs. Bobby only now realised how much Buck had been keeping inside, how many times he must’ve swallowed his feelings instead of expressing them. It was all coming out now. It had finally gotten to be too much and Buck felt comfortable enough with him for the wall to break.

“With everything you’ve been through these past few years, it had to come out at some point. I don’t think you ever really processed any of it.”

“I didn’t need to, I’m fine. I have you, Maddie, and everyone else at the 118.”

“Having people is no good if you don’t tell them anything. You can’t keep everything to yourself, share how you feel every once in a while. You know I’m always there if you need to talk.”

“Everyone has their own problems to deal with, I don’t want to bother them with my issues.”

“We care about you, it wouldn’t bother us at all. We’re all happy to be there for each other when we need to.”

“I’m tired of feeling sad. I just want to be happy, like all of you.”

“You will be, Buck. Here, let yourself feel, cry for as long as you need. I promise you’ll feel better after.”

Bobby kept holding him in his arms for a while, rubbing his back until Buck couldn’t cry anymore. Then, they went back inside the house and played videogames. Bobby was terrible at it. He tried, but he couldn’t really understand how to make it work the way he wanted. But it didn’t matter. They had fun, they laughed, it made them both feel better. When Buck left, after a delicious dinner they’d cooked together, it was with a smile on his face.


End file.
